The Cowboys (8-4) lost to San Diego 17-20 at home in Week 15 and have dropped to second in the NFC East. QB Tony Romo made 19 of 30 passes for 249 yards with two TD’s; overall he’s thrown for 3,574 yards with 22 TD’s and seven interceptions for a 97.4 passer rating. RB Felix Jones had 10 carries for 51 yards, while WR Roy Williams made four catches for 74 yards. WR Austin Miles made six catches for 71 yards with a TD, and WR Patrick Crayton made two catches for 31 yards with a TD. The Cowboys converted on only one of eight third down tries. Their 14th ranked defense is going to be working overtime against the Saints high powered number one ranked offense in the league. The Cowboys 21st ranked pass defense will go against the Saints third ranked pass game, that averages a whopping 286 yards per-game. CB Mike Jenkins leads the Cowboys defense with four interceptions. For Dallas to move the chains they’ll have to rely on their seventh ranked pass game, led by WR Miles Austin’s 999 yards receiving and 10 TD’s, against the Saints 22nd ranked pass defense. QB Tony Romo has and does struggle in December, he is 5-10 SU with 19 career interceptions, but he hasn’t thrown an interception in three straight games . LB Demarcus Ware is a big part of the Cowboys defense and was injured last week with a neck sprain, he is expected to miss 1-2 weeks. Dallas lost in New Orleans last meeting 17-42. Drew Brees threw five TD passes, while Tony Romo was picked off twice.

The Saints (13-0) won in Atlanta 26-23 in Week 14 and have clinched the NFC South. QB Drew Brees made 31 of 40 passes for 296 yards with three TD’s; overall he’s thrown for 3,832 yards with 32 TD’s and 10 interceptions for a 112.3 passer rating. RB Pierre Thomas had 13 carries for 47 yards, while RB Reggie Bush had six carries for 33 yards and he made six catches for 46 yards with two TD’s. WR Marques Colston made six catches for 54 yards with a TD. The Saints were efficient on third down, finishing 8 of 12, and had made seven straight at one point. The Saints are red hot, but have come close to losing. They needed overtime to get past Washington and a survived a close call against Atlanta. Regardless they have the offense to win, and it’ll be up to their 21st ranked defense to shut down the Cowboys third ranked offense. The Saints fifth ranked running game, led by RB Pierre Thomas’ 984 yards rushing and seven TD’s, will go head to head with the Cowboys seventh ranked rush defense. The Saints must put pressure on Cowboys QB Tony Romo and it’ll be up to DE Will Smith to add to his already 10.5 sacks . Safety Darren Sharper leads the Saints defense with eight interceptions, but has just one in five games. Recent Trends to Consider:

Dallas is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games

Dallas is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games on the road.

Dallas is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing New Orleans

Dallas is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against New Orleans

New Orleans is New Orleans is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games

New Orleans is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games at home.

New Orleans is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Dallas

The total has gone UNDER in 5 of New Orleans's last 6 games when playing at home against Dallas.